JAL reports problem with 787 battery on Helsinki-Tokyo flight

By | Yahoo Small Business

TOKYO - (Reuters) - Japan Airlines Co Inc said that a Boeing 787 Dreamliner flight from Helsinki to Tokyo experienced problems with the same type of battery that caught fire in Boston in January and grounded the 787 fleet worldwide for three months.

The JAL website said on Sunday that the battery on JAL flight 414 on Friday did not overheat or emit smoke, but that a cockpit indicator showed trouble with the battery connected to the plane's auxiliary power unit during the flight.

"However, the voltage and electrical current were within normal range and there was no effect on the remainder of the flight," the airline added.

Inspections of the battery, which was removed and replaced, were continuing.

Boeing officials were not immediately available for comment.

The 787 Dreamliner, Boeing's state-of-the-art jet, has two large lithium-ion batteries that provide backup power to aircraft systems. The 787 fleet was grounded for three months early this year after those batteries burned on two jets within two weeks.

The first incident occurred on a JAL plane that had landed in Boston, and the second on an All Nippon Airways plane that experienced battery overheating during a domestic flight and made an emergency landing.

Boeing redesigned the battery and charger system and added a steel box to prevent burning.